Talk or stay silent?

I was wondering…is it wise to talk about your writing? The obvious answer is that there is no harm in it but…is it really that way? And by talking I don’t mean to blog or tweet about it, I mean talking to people who surround you.

I personally kept my writing a secret for a long time. Only one person knew about it and after I finished my novel and I did the second draft, I talked about it to another close person. My family learned about it only a week ago and after I have finished my second novel too. You may now wonder why this secrecy…well, I just wasn’t ready to share it with them.

I don’t think that speaking about your work is a bad thing but I have noticed that when I speak too much, something happens and changes my plans. I know, I know… you think that I am superstitious but I am not. This is happening almost every time. For example I talk with a friend and I tell her that I have plans tonight for drinks with friends and when night comes something happens and someone change the plans, or we cancel it or something like that. I know this may be just a coincidence but it has happened so many times that I decided not to talk about some stuff. After all, I believe that it is more important to act than to talk about something and never doing it in the end.

I don’t really have an explanation and I can’t think of something logical enough to understand why this is happening to me and I don’t really want to. I just act differently and I realize that it is better that way. There are many scenarios when you tell people too much. They can be super enthusiasts and expect too much from you, they can misjudge you and make you doubt, or they can just be jealous and any form of jealousy can cause serious damage.

So, it is a principal for me not to brag, or talk or share it even if I want too much to talk about it, to learn peoples’ opinion and make a conversation about my writing. I do these things only with a handful of people that surround me and the rest, I do it online. I like to share my thoughts with “strangers” who will tell you things like they see it; they will speak the truth because there is no need to do otherwise. Some of them may be in the same situation with me and I find it very helpful and amazing being able to talk with other writers or persons who enjoy books and reading.  After all as I’ve said again… The online presence is real presence. (You can read that post here Exposure.)